National Paper Airplane Day is celebrated every year on May 26 in the United States. It commemorates the simple aeronautical toy that’s been around for thousands of years.
- Flying paper planes is an inexpensive, healthy, and stimulating form of entertainment.
- The use of paper airplanes is believed to have originated 2,000 years ago in China. The earliest known date of the creation of modern paper planes was said to have been in 1909.
- The invention of the paper airplane is mystery, but Leonardo Di Vinci is often given credit for the feat.
- Scientists, engineers and students use paper airplanes to study aerodynamics. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) sent a paper airplane to space on a space shuttle.
- The humidity outside can affect the performance of a paper airplane thrown inside.
- The longest time flying a paper aircraft is currently 29.2 sec and was achieved by Takuo Toda (Japan), in Fukuyama City, Hiroshima, Japan, on 19 December 2010.
- The record distance for a paper plane to be thrown is currently held by Joe Ayoob using a plane designed by John Collins. The throw was made on 26 February 2012 at the McClellan Air Force Base near Sacramento in the United States and the distance – 226 feet and 10 inches (69.14 meters).
- On 24 June 2015 David Green achieved the highest altitude paper plane launch recording an altitude of 35,043 metres (114,970.5 feet). The plane was launched as part of a high school science club activity.
- The largest paper aircraft was made on 28 September 2013 by students and employees at the Braunschweig Institute of Technology in Braunschweig, Germany. It was launched in an aircraft hangar from a platform 8.10 feet (2.47 m) high and flew just over 59 feet (18 meters). The plane was made from paper and took 14 people 1,200 hours to build it. The plane had a span width of 59.7 feet (18.21 meters).
- Ever wondered how a paper airplane thrown in space would fly? Here’s a video of Japanese Astronaut Takuya Onishi throwing a paper plane on board a space shuttle. Takuya Onishi is a Japanese astronaut who was selected for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and spent four months onboard the International Space Station in 2016.
Sources:
Disclaimer
The information contained in South Florida Reporter is for general information purposes only.
The South Florida Reporter assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the contents of the Service.
In no event shall the South Florida Reporter be liable for any special, direct, indirect, consequential, or incidental damages or any damages whatsoever, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tort, arising out of or in connection with the use of the Service or the contents of the Service. The Company reserves the right to make additions, deletions, or modifications to the contents of the Service at any time without prior notice.
The Company does not warrant that the Service is free of viruses or other harmful components
